I've been e-mailing back and forth about a house they said was in Cedar Rapids that I wanted to rent and it was the same exact wording as the e-mail you posted short of their "supposed" name and address of the house! I'm so thankful that you posted this!
This is the phone number of a realty-scammer who claims to be based in Atlanta, GA (with a Massachusetts number). He posted a legitimate-looking ad for a rental property on Craiglist, with details too good to be true. It became obvious it was a scam within two emails. The property was listed for sale on Coldwell Banker and the realtor's number was listed. When we called, she said we were the third person to report this. I have pasted the emails below for purposes of finding this through a search engine if you didn't ever get his phone number, which I never bothered calling.
>>> Hello,
>>>
>>> We are pleased that you have an interest in our house, our lovely home is
>>> still available for lease and we want responsible adults/family that are
>>> neat and also believe that they have what it takes to take care of our
>>> house
>>> as if it were theirs. My wife and I initially had it up for sale but had
>>> a
>>> change of mind in leasing it out ourselves because the agent that was in
>>> charge of our rental property was asking too much of an agent fee and
>>> also
>>> making it difficult for people who cannot afford the rent, stay away from
>>> renting my house.
>>>
>>> The reason why our house is up for lease is because I got transferred
>>> from
>>> my place of work to Augusta GA, I will be away with my family for at
>>> least
>>> 4
>>> to 5 years because of the love I have for them, I have decided not to
>>> sell
>>> our house and also assuring them that we only have few years to spend
>>> here
>>> and will be willing to lease it out to person/family who is willing to
>>> assure us of taking absolute care of our home and pay their rent on time.
>>> I
>>> will start by telling you more in regard me and my family. I have a
>>> daughter
>>> named Brenda (20yrs) who attends University of Augusta GA as a medical
>>> student, she has a lot going for her and she is also down to earth in all
>>> that she does to keep us happy and when she is back home on vacation, she
>>> also assist her mom in the house work when am at work. I work as a
>>> Robotic
>>> Programmer & Welder/Fitter here in Augusta GA and got married to a lovely
>>> wife who is a member of Joyce Meyer Ministries .
>>>
>>> We will be very pleased if we can find the right tenant to rent our home,
>>> a
>>> person who is a clean freak and does not tolerate anything that has to do
>>> with dirt... we also would like to know more about you and your family,
>>> your
>>> renting experience and how long and when you plan moving into our home.
>>> These 3 bedrooms and 2 baths home are very specious and neat. 1,501 sqft
>>>
>>> Below is the rental property address:
>>>
>>> 15 Furber Avenue, Linden NJ 07036
>>>
>>> Pets allowed: Yes
>>> Rent: $1200
>>> Deposit: $1000
>>>
>>> The rental fee is inclusive with utilities and my home available as at
>>> this
>>> moment.
>>> Remain Blessed.
>>> Mr. & Mrs. Frances P Pilch
>> Hello,
>>
>> We are very pleased that you wrote us regarding our home at 15 Furber
>> Avenue, Linden NJ 07036; I also had other people writing me requesting
>> that
>> they rent my property less than a year which I do not support. I want
>> anyone
>> renting my house to at least rent for a year or more. We have also made it
>> known to anyone renting our home that our objectives are making sure that
>> the house is kept clean and neat. Utilities include Electricity, water,
>> gas
>> while appliances includes refrigerator, Stove, microwave, dishwasher,
>> Washer/Dryer, Garbage etc.... I initially wrote you that we had plans of
>> selling our house but had a change in mind to lease it out since we will
>> not
>> be staying more than 5 years.
>>
>> I really know that God has lead me to a wonderful person like yours, as we
>> are planning on selling our home initially thinking that no one can take
>> care of our home when we are gone but with the help of my wife, we are
>> able
>> to think properly before selling our home and have found out that renting
>> it
>> will be the best option for us as we plan on coming back to our lovely
>> home.
>> You have also said a lot that pleases us and we have also seen how
>> wonderful
>> you and your family can be when you move into our home. My concerns has
>> been
>> solved by you and we believe that all you said should be done the right
>> way
>> in ensuring that we trust you of becoming our tenant. We also plan on
>> making
>> our tenant family friends when they move in.
>>
>> If all arrangement goes well, we will have the entrance keys and other
>> relevant document in a hard copy paper shipped to your present home
>> address
>> for you to move in at your convenient date. Our home is beautiful and need
>> no amendments. All you have to do is bring in your belongings and maintain
>> the utilities for us. We also have Internet cable in our home as we
>> speak,
>> and will like you to take absolute care of our house when you move in. As
>> soon as you get back to me I will be attaching a rental application form
>> for
>> you to fill and get back to us with your information so that we can know
>> you
>> better.
>>
>> Remain Blessed.
>> Mr. Pilch & Family
> Hello,
>
> My family and I are presently here in Augusta GA and will be very pleased if
> we have the opportunity in showing you around my house without you asking,
> but as you can see we are not around to do so as we have made all
> arrangement base on trust in ensuring that we have a Christian and reliable
> home take possession of our rental property while we are gone. If you can
> take a tour to see the exterior part of my house and its environment that
> will be lovely as we have set aside a way in getting the keys and other
> relevant duplicate document shipped to your present home address once you
> have been approved as our tenant. Hope you understand where we are coming
> from. Can we attach the rental application form?
> 339-230-1739
>
>
>
hi Nathan, thanks for posting! I also got the exact same emails replying to an offer on hotpads.com (which pulls Craigslist data it seems).. but when I drove by the house I saw the Realtor SOLD signs and called their number and they said it's a scam - and a professional one on top.. he was not ashamed to even fake the email address to have the real owners name.. the realtor said that type of scam happens fairly often - I wish there was a better way to stop these scumbags!
Nethan, Thank god you posted this. If i didn't find this page, we were just about send the deposit to those [***]. I got the same exact email with the same exact context inside, although the actual address is different. Thank you so much for making this!
Thanks for posting, i got the same emails as well, from their posting on Craigslist HI, after two emails they finally gave me this bogus number that i decided to google before calling, and have flagged their post as well.
The nerve of some people messing with people in such a crude nature!